Hangers&Hangers

When I lose weight it seems to come out of my face first.  When I gained it back, it went somewhere else.  Now I look older and my face seems to sag and look boney.    What happened?  How can I fix this?

At some time in everyone’s life (usually around age 40), everybody loses fat, collagen, and bone, preferentially from the face.  This is also the time that many of us have found we’ve gained weight and we go on diets, work out or in some other way try to lose that weight.  When we do, surprise!  We’re observing losses that had already occurred but were masked by the added weight.  The process doesn’t stop when we gain weight back.  We’re now sensitized to the loss and during the year, 2 years or more that we cycle through our weight we’ve lost even more volume in our face.

When I look in the mirror I pull the skin on my face back over my ears!!  Right now, my husband says I look fine.  But that’s when I’m lying on my back.  When I sit up, my whole face falls!  What can I do about this very scary thing that’s happening!?

Your facial skin does not typically STRETCH with age.  It sags because you’ve lost volume under it (fat, collagen, and bone.)  This is natural and occurs in not just humans but in all animals.  Having a ‘face lift’ done simply tightens the skin along the older and now much narrower, more angular face.

I don’t remember having such deep lines on my face before.  I look at pictures of when I was younger and they don’t seem so deep.  Can you put Botox in the lines here (from the nose to the corners of their mouth)?

Botox is used to RELAX muscles, particularly ones that are ‘dynamic’ meaning they move and intensify with your expressions.  Often, these muscles create wrinkles that make us look angry or mad, not just older.   Botox and Dysport soften these lines helping to give us a more relaxed and smoother look.  Over time, Botox and Dysport can help natural collagen grow back and help reduce ‘dynamic’ wrinkles.  Static wrinkles on the other hand, such as those mentioned in the question above (called nasal labial folds or NLF), occur due to the folding of skin after volume loss (fat, collagen, and bone.)  Injecting Botox or Dysport into these areas will relax your upper lip, causing it to sag lower.  Not an improvement I can assure you.  But, there is a solution.

The Answer to Each of These Questions:

Replace the lost volume of fat, collagen, and bone.

Replacing this lost volume will restore your face to a more YOUTHFULL FULLNESS.  By filling (”puff up”) the deflated facial areas, many of these static wrinkles of aging and issues of sagging skin will resolve or improve, sometimes dramatically.  Not surprisingly, the term used for the products that do this is “Fillers”.  With modern techniques and medicine, a more natural, youthfull appearance is possible without invasive surgery and painful recovery times.  Results can be amazing, especially when combined with modern laser treatments and proper daily skin care. Treatments can let you can “try it out” for a while then commit to a treatment with longer results lasting years.

To keep this simple, Restylane, Perlane, Juvederm, Sculptra, all fill (”puff up”) the deflated facial areas and are the primary examples of “Fillers”.  Though there are others, except for specialized needs, these are the only ones I will use.  There are significant medical, esthetic, and ethical reasons combined with years of experience as to why I will not use other products that are on the market.  This is where you either trust your Doctor or you don’t.  This is not a treatment you want to get “wrong”, the “cheapest deal” on or have it done by “a friend” in a back room.  This is your face.  You will be wearing your decision in public for all to see perhaps for years to come.

If you review consumer blogs on the internet, over and over again you will see that the MOST important predictor of great results is… Who Your Injector Is!  Remember, anybody can stick in a needle…only a few will do it cautiously, artistically, and with great attention to your absolute comfort.  Medical Make-up for the 21st century.  Use it.

If you need some advice or medical assistance in your effort to live a healthier lifestyle, please give me a call and I’ll be happy to help you with a complimentary consultation.  I want to help you live longer, stay active, and of course, look younger!

Diane Cantrell, M.D.